South Middlesex Times

Rutgers has received a $3.2 million grant from the National Institutes of Health to study the impact of micronanoplastics on the digestive system.

Micro- and nano-scale plastic particles and fibers, byproducts of environmental and industrial processes, increasingly contaminate the environment. These plastics are now found in food, air, and water, posing potential health hazards.

“This is a concern of epic proportions, especially because we know so little about micronanoplastics’ impact on our health,” said Philip Demokritou, the Henry Rutgers Chair and Professor of Nanoscience and Environmental Bioengineering at Rutgers Health and principal investigator of the project.

With limited existing research on micronanoplastics, there is a need for data based on environmentally relevant micronanoplastics and their potential health implications. This five-year NIH-funded project aims to assess the impact of micronanoplastics within the human digestive system and other organs, particularly for susceptible populations with inflammatory bowel diseases.

Researchers will examine potential health hazards of ingested micronanoplastics on the intestine and other organs as well as cellular processes behind this. The research will also investigate how plastic type (e.g., polyethylene, polystyrene, polyethylene terephthalate), size, and other properties affect their uptake and toxicity. Additionally, they will explore the impact of micronanoplastics on intestinal inflammation.

“We hope that the results of our work will help risk assessors and policymakers assess the risks of micronanoplastics ingestion, provide the basis for regulatory action, and open new areas of research in toxicology and epidemiology for this emerging pollutant,” said Demokritou. He is also director of environmental health biosciences at EOHSI (Environmental Occupational Health Sciences Institute) and a professor in both mechanical aerospace engineering at Rutgers School of Engineering as well as environmental occupational health justice at Rutgers School Public Health.

The grant will support ongoing research activities in micronanoplastics at EOHSI's Nanoscience Advanced Materials Center which studies interactions between nanoparticles with biological environmental systems. It will also expand collaborations across Rutgers including with Michael Verzi from Rutgers Department Genetics who holds Duncan Nancy MacMillan Chair Cancer Genomics co-principal investigator study expert metabolic diseases gastrointestinal tract.